Chapter III: Health centres.

Health centres are local health facilities, providing primary care and, where appropriate, secondary care, and carrying out preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic activities within the centre, without accommodation, or in the patient’s home. Where appropriate, they provide multi-professional care, bringing together medical professionals and medical auxiliaries. By way of derogation from the previous paragraph, a health centre may carry out diagnostic activities exclusively. All health centres, including each of their branches,…

In addition to the activities mentioned in article L. 6323-1, health centres may : 1° Carry out public health initiatives, therapeutic patient education and social initiatives, in particular with a view to promoting access to rights and healthcare for the most vulnerable people or those who do not have access to social protection; 2° Contribute to the continuity of outpatient care; 3° Providing training places, where appropriate at university level,…

A multi-professional university health centre is a health centre that has signed a tripartite agreement with its regional health agency and a public scientific, cultural and professional establishment that includes a medical, pharmaceutical or dental training and research unit, the purpose of which is to develop training and research in primary care. The operating, organisational and assessment procedures for these multi-professional university health centres are set by joint order of…

I.-Health centres are created and managed either by non-profit organisations, or by départements, or by municipalities or their groupings, or by public health establishments, or by legal entities managing private health establishments, whether non-profit or for-profit. A health centre may also be set up and managed by a société coopérative d’intérêt collectif governed by Title II ter of law no. 47-1775 of 10 September 1947 on the status of cooperation….

Profits from the operation of a health centre may not be distributed. They must be placed in reserve or reinvested for the benefit of the health centre concerned or of one or more other health centres or another not-for-profit structure managed by the same management body. The manager’s accounts make it possible to establish compliance with this obligation for each of the health centres it manages. The manager’s accounts are…

I. – Professionals working in health centres are salaried employees. When the health centres are managed by the territorial authorities or their groupings mentioned in article L. 6323-1-3, these professionals may be employees of these authorities or their groupings. Where the health centres are managed by a non-profit organisation in the form of a public interest grouping of which at least two local authorities or groups of local authorities are…

Health centres may be members of territorial professional health communities within the meaning of article L. 1434-12.

Health centres apply the third-party payment system referred to in article L. 160-10 of the Social Security Code and do not charge more than the rates set by the administrative authority or the rates referred to in 1° of I of article L. 162-14-1 of the Social Security Code. Full payment cannot be demanded for treatment that has not yet been provided. When a health centre is placed outside the…

I. – The health centre is responsible for keeping patients’ medical records in conditions that guarantee the quality and continuity of patient care. In the event of prolonged or definitive closure, the health centre will immediately inform the relevant Conseil Départemental de l’Ordre of the measures taken to ensure that patients’ medical records are kept and are accessible. II. – If a patient is referred to another healthcare structure or…

The health centres are responsible for identifying the place of care outside the health centres and for informing the public about the public or social health activities and actions implemented, the terms and conditions of access to care and the status of the manager. Any form of advertising in favour of health centres, or encouraging the use of procedures or services provided by them, is prohibited.